Are you over sixty and tired of being told that you’re old and at risk of dying from the coronavirus?
OVER SIXTY AND O.K.
I’m over sixty, I’m healthy, and I’m following best practices for avoiding contamination: staying home, maintaining social distance, and practically scrubbing the skin off my knuckles.
ANOTHER TIME PEOPLE TOLD ME I WAS OLD
It all reminds me of when I was thirty-five and pregnant with my third child. I was sent for amniocentesis when a screening test came back wonky. Before the procedure, the geneticist who interviewed me asked, “Hadn’t you considered this screening on account of your maternal age?”
No, I hadn’t.
Next, the ultrasound technician asked, “Hadn’t you considered this test on account of your maternal age?’
No, I hadn’t.
When the radiologist asked, I snapped. “I didn’t feel old until three people in a row asked me that question!”
OVER SIXTY, HEALTHY AND WISE
Just because you’re over sixty doesn’t mean you are old. If you are lucky, you’re healthy; if you’re smart, you might also be wise.
And if you’re over sixty, you might also remember other national emergencies: Bay of Pigs, JFK’s assassination, and Republicans choosing Barry Goldwater to run for president. In our youth-oriented culture, you might also think that people over sixty are too old for new love.
None of it’s true.
THE ELECTION
And maybe you actually miss the electioneering brouhaha of the presidential race. Or maybe you’d like to read about a different race with a good outcome, like the Goldwater-Johnson face-off in 1964. That’s when dyed-in-the-wool Vermont Republicans couldn’t bring themselves to vote for Goldwater but still wanted to cast a vote. A couple of men solved the problem by establishing the Vermont Independent Party, with LBJ at the top of the ticket. Republicans who would rather die than vote Democratic cast enough Vermont Independent Party ballots to give LBJ a three-to-one win in the state.
LOOKING FOR SOMETHING TO READ?
And maybe just about now, when you’re beginning to see you’re going to be practicing social distancing for a while yet, you’re looking for a good book to read. I’d like to recommend a novel where the characters, who are in their mid-sixties and who have wildly opposite political opinions, figure out a way not just to tolerate one another, but to fall in love?
SHAMELESS SELF-PROMOTION
If so, you probably want to read Into the Wilderness, originally published in 2010 and still available electronically through Amazon, Apple Books and Google Books. When the book came out, The Vermont Library Association named it notable for its sense of place, and the Independent Publisher’s Association awarded it a Gold Medal for Regional Fiction.
WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY READERS
I’m currently writing a new book, and I can use all the encouragement I can garner. So if you do read Into the Wilderness and like even some small detail, please drop me a line and let me know. I feel wonderfully encouraged every time a reader of the novel or this blog tells me how my words have hit home.
And thank you.
I also am over 60 and do not feel “elderly”. My son use to tell me that I was “chronologically challenged” because when I was a kid there were 48 states and 9 planets! Google basically claims 65 and older as “elderly”Having also had children later in life (36 & 38) I had my chart stamped AMA. When I asked what that meant I was told “Advanced Maternal Age” With all that said though, I do not feel elderly. I am active with activities both inside and out. I would like to think I am still young in heart and mind.
Isn’t there a saying, “You’re as young as you feel?”
Very much so. Along with “age is just a number.” I’m still doing child-like (okay dumb-ass) things.
Dear Deb,
You remember “Bay of Pigs?” I don’t and we are the same age and went through the Weston school system. I do remember getting on the school bus and the teachers were upset as they had hear about Kennedy’s assassination. I think it was second grade. ~Matt
Hi Matt, I remember my parents sitting at the kitchen table drinking whiskey (not their usual drink), both somber and tense. I didn’t know it was the Bay of Pigs till much later, but I remember their aura of worry soup vividly. I also remember John Glenn orbiting the earth three times. Both of these events occurred before JFK’s assassination. I was in second grade in a different school. You and I didn’t become classmates until fourth grade.
I wasn’t sure when you arrived at Hurlbutt. It’s easy for me to remember as I attended K-12. Apparently your elementary education was better than mine. :^)
Seems like over the last few days, the “60 and over” mantra has slowly migrated to “65 and over”. Being 63, I now feel like I’m right on the precipice.
Thanks for your comment, Bob. I think it’s a matter of quality of life rather than quantity. Don’t sweat the numbers!
Hi Deb,
I’m 74, so have seen and heard much in my life. On a daily basis I do not think about my body’s age; my brain is still young and optimistic. I did read “Into the Wilderness” and recommend it highly.
I remember Anderson Cooper saying that his Mom (Gloria Vanderbilt) had such a wonderful outlook on life and love. She believed, even in her nineties, that her next great love was just around the corner.
Paulie
Thanks for being a reader and for your kind words!